The daily herald. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1886-1887, 1887-05-21
SATURDAY, MAY a., 1882
GATLING GUNS.

One of the news writer's Of our eve
ming contemporary refers to the matter
Of Calling guns being mounted at the
Palace gates as "rumor" 1t may be
only a rumor about the guns, but not
SO about embrasures in the Palace
walls, one on each side Of every one OF
the four gates These are closed With
heavy iron doors and have been freely
mentioned as being places for machine
guns. They are certainly not meant
as means of ingress or egress, there
being ample gates for those purposes.
Neither can they be designed for orna-
ment, for nothing SO ugly would be
tolerated about private gentleman's
demesne. Until the popular impress
SION, that these iron doors are screens Of
deaih-dealing weapons, be removed by
an explanation Of what they otherwise
are, the people will so on believing in
their warlike character. What do
these preparations for war nean1 Is it
that the national motto, "Let the
nation be established in square deal
ing" free translation, has been found
wrong in principle, therefore to be
abandoned in favor Of the motto, "Let
the throne be established on powder
magazine, its bulwarks be concrete four
feet thick, and its ministers niurderous
guns" That is just what il looks like.
Then the question arises, "Why these
formidable ~ defensesT Have the
three great Powers Of America, Eng
land and France Withdrawn tfeir
solemn recognition Of Hawaii's indie.
pendence1 Has the sighted King
Tamasese of Samoa given warning OF
.reprisals for King Kalakaua's frater.
nizing with the formers poverty.stiicken
rival King Malietoa1 DO any of the
land.hungering Powers not mentioned
above contemplate descent upon this
leading group Of the Pacific as an
eligible prize1 Or have any descend
ants Of the ancient dynasties on the
other islands arisen to threaten des-
perate efforts at regaining home rule for
either or all the islands of Hawaii,
Maui, Kauai, Molokai, and the gentle
shepherds" domain, LAMAR II any Of
these occasions have caused the ex-
tensive Notifications of Iolani Palace,
and there is really going to be war, the
foreign residents ought to be apprised
ofthe fact, so that they may govern
r themselves accordingly. A reason not
included in the above serious category,
on account of its manifest absurdity, is
that there are fears of Chinese in
vasion Of revenge for money said to
have been lost by Chinese residents in
an opium speculation. The Chinese
Empire does not now conduct wars
at her own doors in the ancient
style Of wild onsets with manual
weapons. She has .yunboats with arma.
ments OF the best in the world, and
before attempting to land man on
our beach, one Of these monsters would
make certain that there was not a
stronghold between Leahi and Eva
cool enough to hold gunner or intact
enough to shelter a gun. Everything
in reason being called up to explain
the turning of the beautiful Palace into
frowning castle, the solution Of the
large expenditure of peaceable tax
payers money for this object must for
the present remain mystery. Only
the hope remains that more revenue
will not be wasted on the defensive
works Of Iolani Palace than the whole
establishment is worth.